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Nostra Signora del Sacro Cuore al Portuense
'Nostra Signora del Sacro Cuore al Portuense '''is a mid 20th century convent and public chapel dependent on the parish of Sacra Famiglia a Via Portuense. It has a postal address at Via Alessandro Brisse 22, in the Portuense quarter. This is just south of the Via Portuense. The actual chapel entrance is on the corner of Via Francesco Crispigni and Via Gaetano Rappini. History The chapel belongs to a school of the Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart (''Figlie di Nostra Signora del Sacro Cuore), which was founded here in 1950. There are two congregations of sisters with this name operating in Rome, which are easily confused. The more familiar one is the Figlie di Nostra Signora del Sacro Cuore -Issodun, which was founded in France and has its Roman headquarters at Via del Casale di San Pio V 37. However, the sisters here were founded at Montefalcione near Naples in 1892 and have their headquarters at Via Cassia 1826. Despite being near the parish church, Mass is said here publicly. This is possibly in order to protect the continuation of Mass being said here at all -there are now only three sisters of the congregation based at Rome, one of whom is here. Appearance The convent (basically now a school) is an impressive five-storey block in an orange-red render, and (despite the date of 1950) it has detailing reminiscent of the Fascist architecture of the EUR. The chapel occupies the ground floor of a two-storey flat-roofed block on the street corner, having a rectangular plan and attaching to the convent on its left hand side. The site slopes backwards from the entrance. The right hand side wall faces the street, and has an attractive composition. There is a marble slab dado that shows the backwards slope, but the rest of the walling is in the same pale orange-red as the convent. The top of the chapel storey is lit by a row of sixteen small round-headed windows, slightly recessed within thin and slightly proud frames in white. Above, the second storey of the edifice (which seems to be an aula) has eight large windows in the same style but standing over odd-looking recessed balustrades. At the rear end of this side wall are three further small windows lower down. The windows have iron grilles. The walls are continued above the roof as a tall parapet, and on the back one is a bellcote with a wide round-headed opening for a single bell. The façade has five of the second-storey windows, identical to those in the side wall. The entrance is within a gigantic arch with a thin frame in the same style as the windows, and in the archivolt of this is a large lunette window in stained glass, protected behind an iron grille. The rest of the arch is occupied by a rectangular marble pylon containing a smaller rectangular portal fitted with an iron gate -the actual entrance door is within, beyond a small porch. Above the portal is a horizontal rectangular recessed panel in the pylon, which is blank but looks as if it was intended for a dedicatory inscription. Over this is a small triangular pediment which intrudes into the lunette. Liturgy Mass is celebrated here, according to the Diocese (July 2018): Weekdays 7:00; Sundays and Solemnities 8:30. External links Diocesan web-page for congregation Info.roma web-page Photo on Arvalia StoriaCategory:Catholic chapels in larger buildings Category:Dedicated private chapels Category:Outside the walls - South-West Category:Dedications to the Blessed Virgin Mary Category:20th century Category:Convent churches and chapels Category:Catholic churches